Lambert alexandre



3 Sheets-Sheet 2.

L. ALEXANDER. SUBMARINE BOAT.

No. 7,609. Patented Sept. 3, 1850.

3 Sheets- Sheet 1.

L. ALEXANDER. SUBMARINE BOAT.

Patented Sept. 3, 1850.

UNITED s'rarus Fmc 1 LAMBERT ALEXANDRE, OF FRANCE.

SUBMARINE VESSEL.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, LAMBERT ALExANDRn, a citizen of France, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Submarine Vessels forthe Exploration of the Bottoms of Rivers, Lakes, and other Bodies ofWVater; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, andexact description of my said improvements, reference being had to theaccompanying drawing, which makes part of this specification, and inwhich Figure l is a side elevation of my said submarine vessel; Fig. 2is a vertical longitudinal section of the same; Fig. 3 is a transversesection through the line w m of Fig. 2, and Fig. 4 is a section offragment upon an enlarged scale of the ribs and panels of the sides ofthe vessel.

The invention or discovery of the means by which persons can descend atwill and explore the bottoms of rivers, lakes and other bodiesof deepwater, and thence at will return again to the surface of the water withfacility and safety, has long been considered a great'"desideratumfindmaffi devices have at differenttiines and by different persons beencontrived for this purpose; some of these have manifested a high degreeof ingenuity and skill, but none of them have possessed such a degree ofadaptation to the general purposes of submarine explorations, as torender them practically useful or capable of superseding the cumbrousand unwieldy, but hitherto indispensable diving-bell. the failure ofthese attempts have been in my opinion the difficulty of keeping up aproper circulation of air within the vessel and the difliculty ofdischarging instantaneously the load or ballast by means of which thevessel is forced to sink, thus allowing her to rise to the surface witha buoyant force proportioned to the load discharged, whenever thisoperation becomes necessary from some derangement of her machinery. Toobviate these defects is the object of my invention which consists,first, in securing within the working-chamber or cabin of the vessel apump which is connected by pipes with an airtight compartment from whichit can draw air and into which it can compress air at will, theconnection being such that by moving proper cocks or valves the pumpbecomes either a suction or a force The chief reasons of pump withrespect to the airtight compartment or to the cabin.

My second improvement consists in attaching to each side of thesubmarine vessel a ballast platform which is hinged at its inner edgeto'the vessel and is slung at its outer edge by chains from rings whichare hung upon the end of a pin at the top of the vessel; the arrangementof the various parts of this device being such that When the pin ispulled inward by the occupants of the vessel the rings are let go andthe platforms, being no longer supported at their outer edges, turn downupon the hinges at their inner edges and discharge instantaneously anyload placed upon them.

My improved submarine vessel has the general form of an egg, being anellipsoid, whose long axis is about double the length of its short axis;it is composed of pieces united together in such a manner that they canbe separated at will, put up in convenient packages for transportation,and can, with facility be again put together With water and airtightjoints, to reconstruct the vessel, which will then be ready forlaunching into the water. The interior of this vessel is subdivided intocompartments, one of which is called the cabin and will convenientlyaccommodate several persons the other compartments are for the receptionof water to ballast the vessel, and to contain a supply of compressedair for the persons in the cabin to respire during the period that thevessel is submerged. The cabin is provided with force pumps by which itsoccupants can keep the air in circulation, and also maintain it in asufliciently pure state for respiration, by forcing it through asolution of caustic potash which absorbs the carbonic acid, with whichthe air has been charged by breathing. The pumps likewise enable theoccupants of the cabin to keep the water from encroaching upon them byits increasing pressure as they descend to the bottom, as by theiroperation the bulk of the atmosphere in the cabin can be increased bypumping air out of the reservoir, so as to keep the cabin constantlyfilled with an atmosphere of a density proportioned to the force withwhich the water presses on and tends to enter the vessel. The cabin isprovided with other force pumps by which a portion of the external wateris drawn into a tight receptacle in the lower part of the vessel toincrease the load of the vessel and cause it to descend to the bottom ofthe water; these pumps are also used to eject again this ballast-waterfrom the receptacle, thereby lightening the vessel, increasing itsbuoyancy, and causing it to rise from the bottom to the surface of thewater.

Before any ballast water is admitted the vessel is generally loaded bystones or other weights until it is within a fraction of the specificgravity of the water in which she is placed, so that a small quantity ofwater drawn in by the pump will cause her to sink and the ejection ofthis small quantity will cause her to rise; but, in case a considerableweight is to be raised from the bottom it will generally be mostconvenient to draw in a weight of ballast-water equal to that of thebody it is intended to raise. Ballaststones may then be loaded on untilthe vessel is as near the sinking point as is desirable, when thesinking can finally be effected by pumping in the additional quantity ofwater required.

As the buoyancy of the vessel is increased in proportion to the weightof water expelled from her, and as her tendency to sink is increased inlike proportion by pumping water into her, the force pumps andballast-water receptacle afford the occupants of the vessel a read andeasy means of ascending or descen ing in the water. To these means ofeffecting vertical movements of the vessel are added a screw propellerand a rudder for effecting and regulating her horizontal movement. Sheis thus rendered capable of locomotion in any direction, the rudder-postpasses through a stuffing box into the cabin and its inner end is fittedwith a-tiller by which it can be operated. The shaft of the propellerlikewise passes through a stuffing or water-tight box\ into the cabin,where it terminates in crank, which is turned by the inmates to op-yerate the screw which propels the vessel. The top and sides of the cabinare provided with bulls-eyes to admit light, and its top and bottom arealso provided with one orj more man-holes, those on top for the en-,-trance and egress of the men when at the; surface of the water, thelower ones for the purpose of gaining access from the interior of thecabin to the earth or other substance at the bottom of the water, or toexamine, draw in, or make fast to any object that may there be met with.Other man-holes are; likewise provided for gaining access from theoutside to the interior of the vessel. The

ropes to the pin are held in a horizontal position suitable forsupporting a load. The drop platforms are for the purpose of carryingthe ballast which generally consists of stones or other heavy bodies;the weight of this ballast should be equal to the force with which it isdesired the vessel should tend to rise to the surface in case the pumpsshould become deranged and fail to work while she is at the bottom, orshe should refuse to ascend by the discharge of the water-ballast alone,because in the event of anything being wrong While the vessel is at thebottom, which renders it desirable that she should ascend promptly tosurface the pin from which the outer edges of the platform hang iswithdrawn, thus allowing the platforms to drop and discharge theirballast; by this operation the vessel is relieved of so much of herload, and as her buoyancy is correspondingly increased she startsinstantly toward the surface; as the vessel is thus fully under thecontrol of its inmates they are insured from every danger of detentionat the bottom any longer than they choose to remain there. Thesedrop-platforms by which the submarine navigator can at will instantlydischarge the ballast and thereby control sucheffective means for.

raising the vessel to the surface, I deem of the highest importance,because it renders submarine explorations for the first time, nearly, ifnot quite as safe, as sailing on the surface of the water, by givingmore full and perfect control over the vessel than has heretofore beenattained.

The accompanying drawings represent one of my improved submarine vesselsconstructed in this instance of longitudinal cast iron ribs (B) unitedby screw bolts to two end pieces (U) in the form of segments of theellipsoid to which the general configuration of the vessel corresponds.The interstices between the ribs are filled by pannels of sheet ironwhose edges are screwed down into rabbets on the corners of the ribs;strips of india rubber being interposed between the panels and the ribsto make the joints air and water tight; this modeof fastening the panelsto the ribs -will be best seen in Fig. 4 which is a section on anenlarged scale taken through a rib and a portion of two adjacent panels;D, D rep resent the panels, B the rib, L L the strips of india rubber,and Y and E the screw bolts and nut-s by which the panels and ribs arebound together. All the joints between the different pieces forming thevessel are secured and rendered air and water tight in this, or someequivalent.

The interior of the vessel is divided into two parts by a bulk head (a')the space (C) behind the bulk-head constitutes the cabin for thereception of the persons who descend n the vessel and. is provided withan sel, by pumping it either out of or into the last on the exterior ofa submarine vessel cabin or air reservoir as may be required, and ofdlscharging it at will as herein set even When the density of theatmosphere in forth.

the compartment Whence the air is drawn is In testimony whereof I havehereunto 5 less than that of the atmosphere in the comsubscribed myname.

partment into Which it is forced as herein 1 Set forth I LAMBERTALEX-ANDRE.

2. I also claim the device, consisting sub- WVitnesses: stantially ofthe drop platforms, chains, and A. S. FARARYER,

10 draw pin, for the purpose of carrying bal- JNo. M. YVYsE.

upper man-hole (O) for the men to enter the cabin and a lower man-hole(S) to give access to the ground or other object at the bottom of thewater; the cabin is lighted by means of bulls-eyes (7)) placed in thepanels at its top and side.

At the stern of the vessel a screw (H) is placed, its shaft passingthrough into the cabin where it terminates in a crank (M) which isturned by the inmates of the cabin to operate the screw and propel thevessel in a horizontal direction. The stern of the vessel is likewiseprovided with a rudder (G) the head of which passes through into thecabin and is fitted with a tiller (K) by which the vessel is steered.

The space forward of the bulk-head is subdivided by an air tight deckinto two compartments, into the upper of which (0) a sufficient quantityof air is compressed by means of one or more pumps (P) to furnish theinmates of the vessel with a supply for respiration during the time theyare sub-= merged; this air can be let out of the reservoir into thecabin as it is wanted through a stop cock (Z), when the air in the cabinhas become vitiated by breathing it is purified by forcing it by meansof the pump through a solution of potash in water kept caustic by anexcess of lime.

The bulk of the atmosphere in the cabin is increased or diminished bypumping air out of or returning it into the reservoir (0') as may berequired, to keep the cabin always full of air of a density sufficientto counterbalance the pressure of the water from without, for instance,if in the descent of the vessel it should not be kept filled with suchan atmosphere the water will begin to enter the cabin through the lowerman-hole which is generally kept open, but a few strokes the pump (P)drawing air from the reservoir ((1') and forcing it into the cabin willsufficiently increase the bulk of the atmosphere in the cabin to drivethe water out again. To prevent loss of air resulting from its expansionand consequent escape from the lower manhole while the Vessel isascending, the excess is forced back again into the reservoir. The lowersubdivision 0, or compartment forward of the bulkhead (a) is for thereception of water to ballast the vessel so as to keep her fromoverturning and likewise to aid in Both the air and water pumps areprovided with four way cocks a and induction and eduction pipes t whichcommunicate with the air and water reservoirs. These pumps areconstructed in the usual manner and the fourway cocksc are so arrangedthat by turning'them to the proper positions the pumps may be made toforce or draw through either one of the pipes t at will.

The subcompartments C, C, are both provided with man-holes O, O, bywhich access may be had from the outside to the interior whenever it isnecessary for repairs or for other purposes.

A hook I (W) is secured to the bow of the vessel to which a line may befastened to moor her or for the purpose of towing her.

The sliding pin (V) on which the stay ropes (R) of the platform (R) arehung, is passed through a stuffing box (W Flg. 2) secured to the top ofthe vessel; the lower end of this pin, which is within the vessel, isbent in order that it may be laid hold of more easily to draw it.intothe vessel when the platforms are to'be dropped. The platform stays haverings or loops on the upper ends which fit loosely over the pin,

and oppose much less resistance to its withdrawal than if they fittightly upon it.

In Fig. l the ballast (m) is shown piled on the top of the platform,which is in a horizontal p6'.1 tiofi.Tlie place at which vessels ofthisdescription can be best and most" ecoiidmically constructed isusually very distant from the place at which they havfe tqbe used,consequently it is a matter of great importance to have them soconstructed that they can be taken to pieces and put up in convenientpackages for transportation, and so that any piece that may happen toget damaged may be replaced without disarranging the rest. This easyportability is also important because of the facilities it affords forconveying the vessel over mountainous and bad roads to inland lakes'orother bodies of water whose bottoms are to be explored with a view offinding precious metals or for other purposes.

It is obvious that different kinds of material may be used in theconstruction of the vessel and that the structure and arrangement of itsparts may be varied to a great extent without in any manner changing theprinciple of the invention.

Having thus described my submarine vessel what I claim therein as myinvention and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. The method ofeffecting a circulation of the air, and of maintaining an atmosphere inthe cabin of the requisite bulk to prevent the encroachment of waterduring the descent of the vessel, and of preventing the waste of air byits expansion and escape from the cabin during the ascent of the ves-

